PLEASE NOTE: The stories reported below are for informational purposes only to educate our clients on the weekly news stories; real, funny, educational, and otherwise. The source of charts and most news will stem from the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), Financial Times (FT), Barrons (B), Business Week (BW), and Bloomberg (Bbg). The purpose of this is NOT to solicit any offers to buy or sell stocks, mutual funds, commodities, or other financial assets – merely to report the news. Please call us to discuss any investment questions you may have. Additionally, we will not take sides in any political or religious news that we report, we will only present the objective facts, and perhaps opine on them from a neutral perspective. Finally, the opinions represented are those of David Abuaf, and not necessarily of Forman Investment Services or Raymond James or its affiliates.

PLEASE NOTE: The stories reported below are for informational purposes only to educate our clients on the weekly news stories; real, funny, educational, and otherwise. The source of charts and most news will stem from the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), Financial Times (FT), Barrons (B), Business Week (BW), and Bloomberg (Bbg). The purpose of this is NOT to solicit any offers to buy or sell stocks, mutual funds, commodities, or other financial assets – merely to report the news. Please call us to discuss any investment questions you may have. Additionally, we will not take sides in any political or religious news that we report, we will only present the objective facts, and perhaps opine on them from a neutral perspective. Finally, the opinions represented are those of David Abuaf, and not necessarily of Forman Investment Services or Raymond James or its affiliates.

PLEASE NOTE: The stories reported below are for informational purposes only to educate our clients on the weekly news stories; real, funny, educational, and otherwise. The source of charts and most news will stem from the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), Financial Times (FT), Barrons (B), Business Week (BW), and Bloomberg (Bbg). The purpose of this is NOT to solicit any offers to buy or sell stocks, mutual funds, commodities, or other financial assets – merely to report the news. Please call us to discuss any investment questions you may have. Additionally, we will not take sides in any political or religious news that we report, we will only present the objective facts, and perhaps opine on them from a neutral perspective. Finally, the opinions represented are those of David Abuaf, and not necessarily of Forman Investment Services or Raymond James or its affiliates.

PLEASE NOTE: The stories reported below are for informational purposes only to educate our clients on the weekly news stories; real, funny, educational, and otherwise. The source of charts and most news will stem from the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), Financial Times (FT), Barrons (B), Business Week (BW), and Bloomberg (Bbg). The purpose of this is NOT to solicit any offers to buy or sell stocks, mutual funds, commodities, or other financial assets – merely to report the news. Please call us to discuss any investment questions you may have. Additionally, we will not take sides in any political or religious news that we report, we will only present the objective facts, and perhaps opine on them from a neutral perspective. Finally, the opinions represented are those of David Abuaf, and not necessarily of Forman Investment Services or Raymond James or its affiliates.

2. Cisco said it would repatriate $67B of its foreign cash holdings to the US, following changes to US tax law

3. Amazon is pushing to turn its medical supplies business into a major seller to hospitals and clinics

4. Walgreens has made a takeover approach to drug distributor Amerisource, a move that could help boost the chain’s profitability

Commentary for the Week of February 12 to February 16, 2018

by David Abuaf, CFA

Investment Manager, RJFS

I’m dizzy, are you? In the week since the S&P 500 had closed down 10.16% from its all-time high on January 26, the benchmark has done nothing but go up! This past week saw the S&P 500 go up 4.3%; its best showing in more than five years.

Even better (?), the S&P 500 closed the week on a six-day winning streak. However, after a run like that, the market may not have the juice to push much higher. “This seems like it’s a bit too aggressive,” says MKM Partners’ Michael Darda.

While anybody with a contrarian eye would say this is too much, too fast, it’s not entirely abnormal. Tony Dwyer of Canaccord Genuity notes the market is following a pattern usually seen after “shock drops.” In such cases, the initial tumble is followed by a big bounce, another drop to a new low, and finally a sustainable rally. “Ultimately, we expect a nasty retest of the low in the coming weeks but would aggressively buy it.”

More volatility would not be a surprise, nor out of the ordinary. Consider 2017, the S&P 500 had just eight 1% moves in either direction; this year, there have already been 10. At this rate, there’d be 78 1% plus moves in 2017; while unlikely, it isn’t out of the question as the rolling 12-month average of 1% moves spiked over 160 by the end of the financial crisis in 2009.

But a pickup in volatility doesn’t have to be a death knell for the bull market. In 1996, the S&P 500 gained 20.3% along with a strong pickup in 1% plus moves. Long story short, as the kids like to say TL;DR ("Too Long; Didn't Read"): don’t expect this year to be easy if you want to follow your money AND the market!

All opinions presented are those of David Abuaf, and not of Raymond James or Forman Investment Services. All opinions are as of this date and are subject to change without notice. Raymond James is not affiliated with a and does not endorse the services or opinions of any of the quoted professionals or their respective firms/ publications.

This information is not a complete description of the securities, markets, or developments discussed and has been obtained from sources considered to be reliable, but Raymond James does not guarantee that the foregoing material is accurate or complete. Any information is not a complete summary or statement of all available data necessary for making an investment decision and does not constitute a recommendation. This information is not intended as a solicitation or an offer to buy or sell any security referred to herein.

The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index of 500 widely held stocks that is generally considered representative of the U.S. stock market. Keep in mind that individuals cannot invest directly in any index. Individual investor's results will vary. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Investing involves risk and you may incur a profit or loss regardless of strategy selected.

To opt out of receiving future emails from us, please reply to this email with the word “Unsubscribe” in the subject line. The information contained within this commercial email has been obtained from sources considered reliable, but we do not guarantee the foregoing material is accurate or complete.

Disclosure

Raymond James financial advisors may only conduct business with residents of the states and/or jurisdictions for which they are properly registered. Therefore, a response to a request for information may be delayed. Please note that not all of the investments and services mentioned are available in every state. Investors outside of the United States are subject to securities and tax regulations within their applicable jurisdictions that are not addressed on this site. Contact your local Raymond James office for information and availability.

Securities offered through Raymond James Financial Services, Inc., member FINRA/SIPC. Links are being provided for informational purposes only. Forman Investment Services is not a registered broker/ dealer and is independent of Raymond James Financial Services. Investment advisory services offered through Raymond James Financial Services Advisors, Inc.Raymond James is not affiliated with and does not endorse, authorize or sponsor any of the listed websites or their respective sponsors. Raymond James is not responsible for the content of any website or the collection or use of information regarding any website's users and/or members.